"A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine until he turned to evil, helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi Knights. He betrayed and murdered your father. Now the Jedi are all but extinct."

The Jedi Purge, also known as the Great Jedi Purge, was the period in which the Jedi Order was destroyed by the Sith and the Jedi were hunted by the Galactic Empire to near-extinction. The destruction of the Jedi traced its origins to the ancient wars against the Sith, at the end of which the Sith were nearly eliminated by the Jedi. The Sith operated in secret, plotting their eventual destruction of the Jedi Order. A millennium after the defeat of the Sith, Darth Sidious, using his public persona of Senator and then Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, manipulated the galaxy into the Clone Wars as a pretext for gaining emergency executive power over the Galactic Republic. He used the war to manipulate the Senate into giving his office virtually unchecked executive power in the name of security. In addition, the clone army that provided the Republic with its military force had secretly been implanted with bio-chips by its Sith creators that, upon activation, would trigger total compliance and force the clones into killing their Jedi leaders.

The Jedi Purge began at the end of the Clone Wars. Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi Knight believed to be the Chosen One destined to destroy the Sith, discovered that Palpatine was Darth Sidious and informed Jedi MasterMace Windu. In what Sidious would publicly label as the "Jedi Rebellion," Windu and three other Masters confronted the Chancellor, who killed the three Masters and engaged Windu in a lightsaber duel. Skywalker, who sought power from Sidious in order to save his wife Padmé Amidala from death, intervened and incapacitated Windu before the Jedi Master could kill the Dark Lord. Sidious then killed Windu, and Skywalker became the Sith Lord Darth Vader and led an attack on the Jedi Temple, killing everyone inside it. While Vader carried out the assault on the Temple, Sidious initiated Order 66 and clone troopers across the galaxy killed their Jedi commanders. The order was a resounding success, and nearly all the Jedi in the field were killed. With the Jedi branded as traitors, and the Clone Wars at an end, Sidious declared himself Emperor and restored the Sith Empire which he transformed the Republic into the Galactic Empire. However, a small number of Jedi who were either not involved with the clones or who managed to escape the trap, survived and would continue to vex the Sith in years after.

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Over the centuries, the Jedi Order fought numerous wars against their ancient enemies, the Sith Order. One thousand years before the Invasion of Naboo, the Jedi believed that the Sith had been destroyed. At least one Sith Lord, Darth Bane, remained alive, and he enacted the Rule of Two. Rather than operating in the open with large numbers, the Sith instead began to operate in the shadows. They would number two at any given time—a master and an apprentice—and used cunning and conspiracy to enact their plans to destroy the Jedi Order and take over the galaxy.[24]

The Sith operated in secret for centuries. In the years before the Invasion of Naboo, Sheev Palpatine of Naboo became the apprentice of Darth Plagueis and took on the name Darth Sidious. As a Sith, Sidious killed his master and became a Dark Lord of the Sith. In his public persona of Senator Palpatine of Naboo, Sidious carried out his plans to gain power over the Galactic Republic. His plan was to destroy the Jedi Order and usher in Sith dominion over the galaxy, with himself as sovereign ruler over an empire that would allow him to cast the galaxy into darkness and unlock the ancient secrets of the Sith and the dark side of the Force. In doing so, Sidious believed he would be able to remake the universe in his own designs.[3]

The Sith revealed themselves to the Jedi during the Naboo Crisis.

Sidious orchestrated the Invasion of Naboo, in which the Sith—through his apprentice, Darth Maul, before Maul was defeated—revealed themselves to the Jedi, as a means of gaining power. As Senator Palpatine, he urged Naboo's ruler, QueenPadmé Amidala, to call for a Vote of No Confidence in the leadership of Supreme ChancellorFinis Valorum. Palpatine was nominated to succeed Valorum and ultimately won the election, placing him in charge of the Republic.[25] Around the same time, Jedi MasterSifo-Dyas, a member of the Jedi Council who believed that a galactic war was imminent, secretly ordered the creation of a clone army on Kamino. Sifo-Dyas, who was killed at the behest of CountDooku, who became Sidious' apprentice, intended the army to be used for the Republic.[26] Dooku, as Darth Tyranus, secretly took over the project, and the Sith saw to it that bio-chips were added into each clone trooper. These chips contained Protocol 66, a command that, when executed, would force the clone troopers to kill all Jedi who they encountered.[27]

The Jedi Order was placed in charge of the war effort, with Jedi serving as Generals and Commanders in the military. After several years of war, many of the galaxy's citizens turned against the conflict and blamed the Jedi leaders for the prolonged and devastating war. Public opinion therefore began to turn against the Jedi, with many in the public viewing the Jedi Order as synonymous with the Clone Wars.[29]PadawanBarriss Offee, a member of the Order, also viewed the Jedi as having become complicit in a mistaken war, leading her to bomb the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.[30] Other Jedi also shared her views; Jedi MasterDepa Billaba believed it was a mistake for the Jedi to lead the Clone Wars.[31]Grand MasterYoda, after setting out on a spiritual path to learn the secrets of eternal consciousness within the Force, saw a vision on Dagobah of Jedi fighting clone troopers and being killed by Darth Sidious.[32] Through his journey, he came to believe that the Jedi Order may have lost the Clone Wars simply by fighting in it. He suspected that the Jedi would lose the war, but ultimately be victorious in the fight against the Sith.[33]

Towards the end of the war, the clone conspiracy was nearly uncovered when clone trooper Tup suffered from a premature activation of Protocol 66. He murdered Jedi Master Tiplar during the Battle of Ringo Vinda.[34] After Tup's death, his friend and fellow trooper, Fives, investigated what happened and learned about the bio-chip and the Protocol 66 conspiracy. He confronted the Chancellor, who feigned an assassination attempt against him and implicated Fives. Fives told Anakin Skywalker and Clone CaptainRex about the conspiracy, but they did not believe him. Fives was killed by a fellow clone after being viewed as a threat, and the official story of what happened to Tup was that he was exposed to a parasite that made him violent.[35] The Jedi later learned that the Sith were involved in the creation of the clone army, but they did not learn of the conspiracy and continued to use the clones as their only means of combating the Separatist Alliance.[26]

The final days of the Clone Wars saw Chancellor Palpatine amassing more central authority, and the Jedi Council becoming increasingly distrustful of the Chancellor and his growing power. They felt that the dark side of the Force surrounded the Chancellor, though they did not yet know that he was the Dark Lord they had been searching for the entire war. After the death of Count Dooku during the Battle of Coruscant, the Chancellor promised a swift end to the war once GeneralGrievous, the leader of the Separatist Droid Army, was killed. The Jedi Council, wary of the Chancellor's claims that he would give up his executive power, privately discussed removing the Chancellor from office if he did not give up his power upon Grievous' death.[1]

It was in the war's last days when Anakin Skywalker began having visions of his wife, now-Senator Amidala, dying in childbirth. Determined to save his wife and their unborn child—the couple was unaware that they were expecting twins—Skywalker began searching for the power to save his family. Palpatine regaled him with the Tragedy of Darth Plagueis, which he described as an old Sith legend, and explained that Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith who had unlocked the secrets of immortality. Shortly thereafter, the Chancellor revealed to the errant Jedi Knight that he was indeed Darth Sidious, and that he could help Skywalker save Amidala's life. Skywalker initially rejected the opportunity and informed Jedi Master Mace Windu, a member of the Jedi Council, about the Chancellor's identity.[1]

The confrontation in the Chancellor's office sparked the beginning of the Jedi Purge.

Knowing the Chancellor's true identity, and with Palpatine having not yet given up his executive power despite the death of General Grievous during the Battle of Utapau, Windu assembled a team of three other Jedi Masters—Kit Fisto, Agen Kolar, and Saesee Tiin—to arrest the Chancellor. The Jedi Masters confronted the Chancellor in his office, and Sidious lashed out at them, killing the three other Jedi Masters and engaging Windu in a lightsaber duel. The duel moved throughout the Chancellor's office until Windu disarmed the Dark Lord, at which point Skywalker arrived to witness what Sidious claimed was the Jedi trying to take over the Republic. Because he needed Sidious to survive in order to save Amidala's life, Skywalker intervened when Windu was about to kill the Chancellor and cut off Windu's hand. Sidious used the opportunity to unleash a torrent of Force lightning on the Jedi Master, sending Windu out the window and to his death. Having turned against the Jedi Order, Skywalker pledged himself to Darth Sidious and became the Sith Lord known as Darth Vader.[1]

"This is Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen, with the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take their place. This message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi: trust in the Force. Do not return to the Temple. That time has passed, and our future is uncertain. Avoid Coruscant. Avoid detection. Be secret... but be strong. We will each be challenged: our trust, our faith, our friendships. But we must persevere and, in time, I believe a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you always."

On the orders of Darth Sidious, Darth Vader leads the 501st Clone Battalion into the Jedi Temple.

Windu's attempt on Sidious' life gave the Dark Lord the justification he needed to brand the Jedi as traitors and destroy the Jedi Order. He ordered Vader to go to the Jedi Temple and kill every Jedi who was inside. Vader brought with him a battalion of clone troopers, ones loyal to the Sith as a result of Sidious' activation of Protocol 66. While Vader and the 501st Legionassaulted the Jedi Temple, Sidious ordered clone commanders across the galaxy to begin executing Order 66. On worlds such as Mygeeto, Felucia, Cato Neimoidia, Saleucami,[1] and Kaller,[36] clone forces killed their Jedi commanders. Some Jedi, including Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi on Utapau, Former Padawan Ahsoka Tano on Mandalore, Master Luminara Unduli and Grand Master Yoda on Kashyyyk,[1] and Padawan Caleb Dume on Kaller,[36] were able to escape the clone onslaught, but most Jedi fell. This included in the Jedi Temple, where almost everyone, including younglings, were killed by Vader and his clone forces. Hoping to lure more Jedi to their deaths, Vader activated a beacon inside the Jedi Temple that broadcast an emergency message requesting all Jedi to return to the Temple.[1]

With the Jedi Order effectively destroyed, Sidious called a special session of the Senate in order to mark the end of the Galactic Republic. The Sith Lord presented himself as a brutally wounded victim of an attempted Jedi coup and pledged that the remaining Jedi traitors would be eliminated. He further used the instability wrought by the Clone Wars to transform the Republic into the Galactic Empire, a proclamation that was met with enthusiastic congressional support.[1]

While Sidious proclaimed himself Emperor of the galaxy, Kenobi and Yoda infiltrated the Jedi Temple and found the destruction left in Vader's wake. Kenobi altered the Jedi beacon to warn the Jedi to avoid Coruscant, and soon saw a holographic recording that showed him the truth: Darth Vader, the man responsible for the deaths in the Jedi Temple, was Anakin Skywalker, his former apprentice. The two Jedi resolved to destroy the Sith, with Yoda planning to confront the Emperor while Kenobi would track down and kill his former friend.[1]

With the destruction of the Jedi Order, Sidious achieved his goal of restoring Sith rule to the galaxy.

Kenobi tracked Vader to the volcanic world of Mustafar by stowing away aboard Amidala's ship, after the senator chose to travel to Mustafar in search of her husband. Vader, who slaughtered the Separatist Council on Mustafar and brought an end of the Clone Wars, became enraged when he saw his former master, believing that he and Amidala were conspiring against him. Vader attacked Amidala and left her unconscious, while he and Kenobi engaged in a lightsaber duel throughout the Separatist complex and above the lava rivers. Yoda, meanwhile, confronted the Emperor and also engaged him in a lightsaber duel. Yoda was unable to defeat the Emperor and was rescued by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan, an ally of the Jedi Order. On Mustafar, Kenobi cut off three of Vader's limbs and left the Sith Lord to burn to death on the banks of a lava river, while Kenobi rescued Amidala and left Mustafar. The Emperor soon arrived on Mustafar and found his battered apprentice. They returned to Coruscant, where Vader was given a suit of life-supporting armor that he would be forced to wear for the rest of his life.[1]

Kenobi rendezvous with Yoda and Organa on the asteroid colony of Polis Massa, where Amidala gave birth to her twins, Luke and Leia, before dying. The Jedi Masters knew that if they had any hope of ever defeating the Sith, they would need to keep Anakin's children hidden and safe. Leia was taken to Alderaan, where she was raised by Organa and his wife, QueenBreha Organa, as Princess Leia Organa. Luke was taken to live with Anakin's stepbrother, Owen Lars, and Owen's wife Beru on Tatooine. Kenobi went into exile on Tatooine to watch over the boy, while Yoda returned to Dagobah in seclusion.[1]

"The Emperor has foreseen a new threat rising against him: the children of the Force. They must not become Jedi.""Yes, Lord Vader.""Hunt down this new enemy, and if they will not serve the Empire, eliminate them along with any surviving Jedi who would train them. This is my master's command."

The Age of the Empire saw the continued hunting of Jedi survivors across the galaxy. Darth Vader ordered by his master to retrieve a new lightsaber crystal to replace the one lost on Mustafar travelled to the site of a sacred Jedi monastery on the river moon of Al'doleem. There he faced Jedi Master Kirak Infil'a and despite losing in their first duel and taking massive damage[13] he defeated him and took his lightsaber as his own.[37]

In order to hunt them down and eliminate them, Vader was ordered by the Emperor to train a group called the Inquisitorius made up of former Jedi. Their past as Jedi meant the Inquisitors were weak in the dark side of the force and defensive, unused to attacking. Vader noticed this when he began training them and decided to train them in a purely offensive style.[14] Several of them also studied the records of the Jedi Order to familiarize themselves with their enemies and hunt them more efficiently.[source?] The Inquisitors were given a hit list of Jedi unaccounted for after the purge including Jedi such as Yoda, Quinlan Vos, Ahsoka Tano and Jocasta Nu.[14]

Nu, the former Chief Libarian of the Jedi Order, was given special importance. She was attempting to preserve the order by creating a new hidden school alongside her assistant Gar. To do this she needed students and in pursuit of this goal she used a secret tunnel back in to the temple to find a holocron with a list of every Force-sensitive child catalogued prior to Order 66.[14] While she successfully managed to sneak in to the temple and retrieve the holocron from a secret vault her escape was not so easy. While escaping she saw the Grand Inquisitor reading and discarding her books which sent her in to a frenzy causing her to attack him.[38]

After a brief lightsaber duel against the Grand Inquisitor she was bested and only Vader's intervention saved her life. Vader demanded she be taken alive causing an argument between him and the Inquisitor which allowed Nu to escape. She retreated to a computer access room in the Library retrieving a special weapon and initiating deletion of the archive files.[39] After failing to kill him with the weapon and ruining her lightsaber in the process, Nu attempted to kill Vader by self-destructing it but he managed to redirect it so that it blew a hole in the Temple's outer wall. Grabbing a green-bladed lightsaber from a shelf, Nu took the opportunity to escape out the gap, but was forced to fight off several Coruscant Guard shock troopers led by Commander Fox, who also fired on Vader by mistake due to Fox neglecting to provide a description of the Sith Lord.[40]

Snapping the clone commander's neck, Vader ordered the troopers to take Nu alive, stopping her with the Force after she attempted to commit suicide in order to deny them the information she held. Restrained and confined aboard a patrol transport, Nu was forced to watch as Vader accessed the coveted information: the Kyber memory crystal, containing a list of all known Force-sensitive children in the galaxy. When Nu inquired as to what her fate would be, Vader ignited his lightsaber but met no resistance from Nu, who accepted her death. The list of names was then destroyed by Vader, to ensure that his master could not use it to find and train other Sith apprentices.[40]

Following these events the hunt for Jedi continued resulting in the capture and eventual death of Jedi Master Luminara Unduli in the Spire, a heavily-fortified former Separatist prison on Stygeon Prime. Her bones were kept as they still contained traces of her Force signature even after her death and could lure other Jedi survivors to their deaths by making them believe that she was still alive. This strategy proved effective, with Jedi survivors such as Caleb Dume making for Stygeon Prime only to be caught in a trap.[6]

By 18 BBY, former Padawan Ferren Barr[41] had begun influencing kingLee-Char of Mon Cala into open rebellion against the Empire. In retaliation to this, the Emperor sent Vader, along with three Inquisitors, Tenth Brother, Ninth Sister, and Sixth Brother, to the water world to learn the truth about what was happening on Mon Cala and if Jedi were present, then Vader was to destory them.[15] During the ensuing conflict, Vader captured Lee-Char, and killed Ferren Barr, but Barr's acolyte Verla escaped after he told her to find another surviving Jedi such as Quinlan Vos or Yoda to finish her training.[42]

Sometime after the occupation of Mon Cala, the Sixth Brother was sent to Thabeska to hunt for a possible Force-sensitive. Unbeknownst to him, this is where Ahsoka Tano had been in hiding. After discovering the Inquisitor's presence, Ahsoka fled to Raada and eventually started an early rebel movement. During an uprising on Raada, she fought the Sixth Brother. She used the Force to cause the Inquisitor's lightsaber to explode, killing him. She later used the now-purified kyber crystals from his saber to build her own lightsabers.[43]

Eventually, Darth Vader and the Inquisitoriuslocated the former Jedi Master Eeth Koth, who had left the Order before the end of the Clone Wars. Vader found Koth with his wife, who had just given birth. Sending an Inquisitor to secure the child, Vader engaged Koth in a lightsaber duel. Once the child was secured, Vader stabbed Koth in the back, killing him.[16]

As the Empire expanded throughout the galaxy, and the Sith increased their hold over the cosmos, the Emperor sensed a new threat that could potentially rise against him. This threat, which Darth Vader referred to as the "children of the Force," came in the form of young Force-sensitives who the Emperor feared would rise up against the Empire. The Inquisitors were ordered to either turn these individuals to the dark side or eliminate them, along with any Jedi who could potentially train them. To that end, the Inquisitors carried out an operation known as Project Harvester to capture these young Force-sensitive beings.[44] These individuals were recruited from such facilities as the Imperial Academy on the Outer Rim world of Lothal or were taken from their parents as infants.[45]

The Age of the Empire also led to a number of rebel cells operating throughout the galaxy in opposition of the Empire. One such cell was the Spectres rebel cell that based on Lothal, and was was led by CaptainHera Syndulla of the starshipGhost, as well as Caleb Dume,[46] who took on the name Kanan Jarrus in order to evade Imperial execution.[5] The cell came to the attention of the Empire after Jarrus revealed himself as a Jedi while freeingWookieeslaves from the spice mines of the planet Kessel.[46] The Empire tracked down Kanan and his Padawan, Ezra Bridger, and they too were lured into the Spire, but they managed to escape before they were killed.[6]

Later, the Spectres sabotaged the Empire Day celebrations at Lothal's Capital City in 4 BBY and rescued the RodianImperial Information Office employee Tseebo. The Grand Inquisitor pursued the Spectres but they were able to escape into hyperspace aboard the Ghost.[47] However, the Grand Inquisitor was able to track down the Spectres using an XX-23 S-thread tracker attacked to the auxiliary shuttle Phantom. While the other crew members spirited Tseebo away into hiding, Ezra and Kanan led the Grand Inquisitor to Fort Anaxes on PM-1203. Following a brief duel, Ezra and Kanan escaped the Inquisitor. However, Ezra tapped into the dark side in a moment of fear.[48]

Due to the failure of the Inquisitor and other Imperial agents to capture the Spectres and their Jedi "leader", Grand MoffWilhuff Tarkin arrived on Lothal and chastised them for their failings. Working with the Imperial Security BureauAgentKallus and Tarkin, the Grand Inquisitor managed to trap the Spectres at the Imperial Communications Center near Jalath. The Inquisitor bested Kanan in combat and captured the Jedi. However, the other Spectres were able to escape and used a computer spike to hijack the communications tower and broadcast Ezra's message of rebellion.[49] After the Grand Inquisitor and Kallus proved unable to break Kanan, Tarkin advocated transferring the Jedi to Mustafar, a place "where the Jedi went to die."[50]

Above Mustafar, the Grand Inquisitor continued interrogating Kanan aboard Tarkin's Imperial Star DestroyerSovereign; taunting Kanan about the death of his master Billaba. However, Kanan's comrades infiltrated the Sovereign and Ezra rescued his master. Kanan then defeated the Grand Inquisitor in a duel aboard the Star Destroyer's reactor core. Rather than face the penalty for his failure, the Grand Inquisitor committed suicide by plunging into the malfunctioning reactor. The Spectres escaped Tarkin's stricken Star Destroyer with the help of Phoenix Cell, a larger rebel cell. They were also greeted by Tano, who revealed herself as the rebel spymaster Fulcrum.[17]

Shortly afterwards, the Emperor sent Darth Vader to deal with the rebel threat, as the rebels began working with the larger rebel movement led by Senator Organa and Tano,[17] the former Padawan of Anakin Skywalker. Following a botched mission to rescue MinisterMaketh Tua, Darth Vader ambushed the Spectres at the Imperial Complex on Lothal. Despite besting Kanan and Ezra in lightsaber combat, the Spectres managed to escape back to the Phoenix fleet. However, Darth Vader pursued them in his TIE Advanced x1 and crippled the rebel flagship Phoenix Home. During the dogfight, Tano realized that Darth Vader was her former mentor Anakin Skywalker. After the Phoenix Squadron escaped with the Jedi fugitives, the Emperor ordered him to send another Inquisitor to deal with the situation.[18]

During the Assault on Seelos, AdmiralKassius Konstantine was ordered to rendezvous with the Fifth Brother in space. While Konstantine was concerned that this rendezvous had compromised the Imperial Security Bureau Agent Kallus' mission on Seelos, the Fifth Brother was unperturbed and vowed to succeed where Konstantine and Kallus had failed.[51]

Later, the Seventh Sister and the Fifth Brother ambushed members of the Spectres rebel cell at an abandoned Republic Haven-class medical station in space. One of the Spectres was Kanan's Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger, who clashed with both the Seventh Sister and the Fifth Brother in lightsaber combat. Following a brief skirmish, the Spectres managed to escape back to Phoenix Group on the Phantom. Ezra related his encounter to Kanan, who was shocked that there was more than one Inquisitor.[19]

The Seventh Sister and the Fifth Brother then embarked on a campaign to abduct Force-sensitive children for the Empire and kidnapped baby Alora from her grandmother Darja. Tano learned about the Inquisitors' secondary mission and enlisted Kanan and Ezra's help in stopping them. Tracking the Inquisitor's coordinates, Kanan, Ezra, Garazeb Orrelios and Chopper traveled to the planet Takobo. They managed to rescue the Ithorian baby Pypey from the Inquisitors but were unable to match them in combat. Tano came to their rescue and the Jedi and rebels escaped aboard the Phantom. With the Jedi Order gone, Tano, Kanan, and Ezra resolved to protect Force-sensitive children from the Empire.[20]

Acting on information obtain by one of the Seventh Sister's ID9 seeker droids, the Seventh Sister and Fifth Brother later joined forces with Agent Kallus and Admiral Konstantine to hunt down and destroy the Phoenix Squadron, which was hiding on the planet Garel. The two Inquisitors caught up with Ezra and Kanan but the Spectres escaped aboard the Ghost into space.[52]

For the next several months, the Seventh Sister and the Fifth Brother continued their hunt for Ezra and Kanan, undermining their efforts to help Phoenix Squadron find a new base on Oosalon. In desperation, Ezra, Kanan, and Tano visited the Lothal Jedi Temple to seek out wisdom in this hour of crisis. There, Ezra communed with Yoda, who told the young Padawan to find Malachor. Meanwhile, Kanan completed his Jedi Trials and emerged a Jedi Knight while Tano came to peace with the fact that Anakin had become Vader. The trio managed to escape the Lothal Jedi Temple before the Fifth Brother and Seventh Sister forced their way into the temple. The two Inquisitors then informed Vader about their finding.[21]

After helping Phoenix Squadron to establish Chopper Base on the planet Atollon, Kanan and Ezra accompanied Tano to the planet Malachor, intent on finding the secrets to destroying the Sith. There, they were attacked by the Eighth Brother. Ezra was separated from Kanan and Tano and encountered the former Sith apprentice Maul, who offered to help him obtain the secrets inside the Malachor Sith Temple. After Maul helped the Jedi and Tano to fight off the Eighth Brother, Seventh Sister, and Fifth Brother, they reluctantly teamed up with Maul to obtain the temple's secrets. While Ezra was convinced that Maul was an ally, Kanan and Tano distrusted the former Sith.[22]

Maul convinced Ezra to place the Sith holocron they had recovered inside the Sith temple's obelisk. After killing the Inquisitors, Maul then turned on Kanan and Tano, blinding the former. Meanwhile, Ezra learned that the Sith temple was an ancient battle station capable of destroying all life and refused to harness the Temple's dark side powers. However, Vader arrived and fought Ezra and Tano. Ezra and his blinded master managed to escape with Chopper aboard the Phantom while Tano stayed behind to hold back Vader. After the Sith temple imploded, Vader departed while Tano headed inside the temple.[22]

By the time of the Galactic Civil War, a conflict between the Empire and the consolidated Rebel forces that had come to be known as the Rebel Alliance,[10] only two and one former Jedi—Kenobi, Tano, and Yoda—were known to still be in existence.[53] Luke Skywalker began his Jedi training under Kenobi, before the Jedi Master was killed by Darth Vader.[10] Luke received guidance from Kenobi's spirit, and after a number of years the departed Jedi Master sent Luke to Dagobah, where he received more extensive Jedi training from Yoda.[54]

The Jedi hopeful cut his training short in order to rescue his friends, Han Solo and Princess Leia, the latter of whom he did not yet know was his sister, from Vader on Bespin. Luke soon learned this was a trap, as Vader wanted to capture Luke and train him as his new apprentice, and the two engaged in a lightsaber duel. During the duel, Luke learned that Vader was his father, and he fled the fight and was rescued by his friends.[54] One year later, Luke proclaimed himself a Jedi Knight and returned to Dagobah, where he found a weary and dying Yoda. Before death, Yoda imparted final wisdom onto his apprentice and confirmed that Vader was his father. He also urged Luke to pass on his Jedi training to others. Upon Yoda's death, Luke became the last of the Jedi.[53]

Darth Sidious falls to his death, bringing an end to the galactic reign of the Sith.

Having sensed the goodness in his father, the last vestiges of Anakin Skywalker, Luke surrendered himself to Vader during the Battle of Endor and was brought before the Emperor. Luke and Vader engaged in a final lightsaber duel, and Luke nearly turned to the dark side after lashing out at Vader in anger, but he composed himself and tossed his lightsaber aside, refusing to fight any further. The Emperor attempted to kill Luke, but the sight of his son in agony led to Vader's redemption. Once again Anakin Skywalker, the redeemed Jedi sacrificed himself to kill the Emperor and save his son. Between their deaths and the Empire's defeat during the battle, the era of Sith rule over the galaxy came to an end.[53]

Skywalker and R2-D2, after the destruction of the former's Jedi temple.

The death of the Emperor, made possible by the return of the Jedi, left the Galactic Empire leaderless. The Empire fractured into competing sects,[55] while the Rebel Alliance reformed itself into the New Republic.[56] Heeding Yoda's advice, Luke set out to rebuild the Jedi Order, eventually gathering a group of at least a dozen students at a training temple, among them his nephew, Ben Solo, the son of Leia Organa, who was Luke's sister, and Han Solo. Luke sensed darkness in his nephew, however, and, one fateful night, went to confront him. Peering into his nephew's mind, Luke saw the terror that his nephew would bring to the galaxy, and in a moment of instinct, ignited his lightsaber. Luke quickly came to his senses and was overcome with shame, but Ben had stirred. Unable to stop his nephew, Ben brought down his hut with the Force, collapsing it in on his uncle. Ben fell to the dark side of the Force, seduced by the mysterious Snoke, and destroyed his uncle's efforts to rebuild the Jedi Order, fleeing with a handful of students and slaughtering the rest. Ben joined the Knights of Ren, taking on the name Kylo Ren, and became a student of Snoke, the Supreme Leader of the First Order. Meanwhile, Skywalker went into self-exile at the First Jedi Temple on Ahch-To only to be brought back into the fold sometime later by the Force-sensitive orphaned scavengerRey, who became the last Jedi after Skywalker sacrificed himself at the Battle of Crait to save the Resistance.[57][58]

The concept of a period in which the Galactic Republic fell to make way to the Galactic Empire dates back from George Lucas' earliest drafts of Episode IV written in the 1970s. In Lucas' second draft for A New Hope, the Holy Rebellion of '06 was a conflict in which the Black Knights of the Sith, a Sith mercenary band, destroyed and hunted down the Jedi Bendu of Ashla, who were the defenders of the Republica Galactica.[65]